[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 31 (Friday, February 14, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8967-8968]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-02693]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-9906-27-OARM]


Availability of Guidance Documents; Permit Appeals; Citizens' 
Guide to the Environmental Appeals Board; Superfund Program; Consent 
Agreements

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of availability of guidance documents.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing 
the availability of four revised guidance documents: A Citizens' Guide 
to EPA's Environmental Appeals Board; The Environmental Appeals Board 
Practice Manual; Revised Guidance on Procedures for Submission and 
Review of CERCLA Section 106(b) Reimbursement Petitions; and 
Environmental Appeals Board Consent Agreement and Final Order 
Procedures. EPA's Environmental Appeals Board is the final decision 
maker on administrative appeals under all major environmental statutes 
the EPA administers. The EPA issued these guidance documents to provide 
guidance to citizens and practitioners on procedures and practice 
before the Board. The EPA revised the first two documents to reflect 
amendments to an EPA rule governing the Agency's permit appeal 
procedures, which EPA published in the Federal Register on January 25, 
2013, and which became effective on March 26, 2013. The EPA revised the 
third document in February 2012 to streamline the procedures to 
petition for reimbursement of response costs under section 106(b) of 
the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability 
Act (CERCLA). The EPA has removed the fourth document as an appendix to 
the Board's Practice Manual, and it now is available as a freestanding 
document

[[Page 8968]]

with minor revisions to make it easier for stakeholders to locate it.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eurika Durr, Clerk of the 
Environmental Appeals Board, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Mail 
Code: 1103M, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20460; 
telephone number: 202-233-0122; fax number: 202-233-0121; email 
address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Does this action apply to me?

    This action is directed to the public in general, and may be of 
particular interest to anyone who seeks review by the Environmental 
Appeals Board of a permit decision issued pursuant to the Hazardous and 
Solid Waste Amendments to the Resource Conservation Recovery Act 
(RCRA), Underground Injection Control (UIC), National Pollutant 
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), Prevention of Significant 
Deterioration (PSD), or other final permit decision under 40 CFR 124.19 
or who seeks reimbursement of response costs under section 106(b) of 
CERCLA. Because these guidance documents may be of interest to 
everyone, the Agency has not attempted to describe all the specific 
entities that may be interested in this action. If you have any 
questions regarding the applicability of this information to the 
particular petition, consult the person listed under FOR FURTHER 
INFORMATION CONTACT.

B. How can I get copies of this document and other related information?

    Electronic copies of these four guidance documents and other 
related documents, including a copy of the recent rule revising part 
124, are available at http://www.epa.gov/eab/. The public also may view 
these documents on site at the Environmental Appeals Board, U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1201 Constitution Avenue NW., U.S. EPA 
East Building, Room 3332, Washington, DC 20460. The Clerk of the 
Board's hours are 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, excluding federal holidays. The Clerk of the Board's 
telephone number is (202) 233-0122. For security reasons, advance 
notice is required to access the EPA building where the Board is 
located.

II. Background

    The EPA announces the availability of four guidance documents that 
the Agency's Environmental Appeals Board (Board) has issued: (1) A 
Citizens' Guide to EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (Citizens' Guide); 
(2) The Environmental Appeals Board Practice Manual (Practice Manual); 
(3) Revised Guidance on Procedures for Submission and Review of CERCLA 
Section 106(b) Reimbursement Petitions (CERCLA Section 106(b) 
Reimbursement Guidance); and (4) Environmental Appeals Board Consent 
Agreement and Final Order Procedures (CAFO Procedures). The EPA revised 
the Citizens' Guide and Practice Manual to reflect changes to the 
Agency's permit appeal procedures under 40 CFR 124.19. The amendments 
to 40 CFR 124.19 were published in the Federal Register on January 25, 
2013, and became effective on March 26, 2013.
    The Citizens' Guide provides general guidance about the Board and 
its procedures and is intended principally to assist stakeholders 
without legal training involved with matters pending before the Board. 
Because the Citizens' Guide contains information about the part 124 
permit appeals process, the EPA revised this guidance document to 
reflect the recent changes to 40 CFR part 124.
    The Practice Manual provides general descriptions of the regulatory 
framework for Board proceedings and provides guidance to litigants on 
matters related to practice before the Board. Because it too contains 
information about the part 124 permit appeals process, it also was 
revised to reflect the recent changes to 40 CFR part 124.
    The EPA issued the CERCLA Section 106(b) Reimbursement Guidance on 
February 23, 2012. Section 106(b) of the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), 42 USC 
9606(b), as amended by the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act 
of 1986, allows any person who complies with an EPA order issued under 
section 106(a) of the statute to petition for reimbursement of the 
reasonable costs incurred in complying with the order, plus interest. 
Reimbursement is authorized if a petitioner can establish that it was 
not liable for response costs or that the Agency's selection of a 
response action was arbitrary or capricious or otherwise not in 
accordance with law. The CERCLA Section 106(b) Reimbursement Guidance 
details both the information a petitioner is expected to submit as part 
of a petition for reimbursement under CERCLA section 106(b) and the 
procedures the Board intends to follow in evaluating petitions. The EPA 
initially issued procedural guidance regarding the procedures for 
submission and review of petitions for reimbursement in June 1994. 
Based on its experience with reimbursement petitions after that date, 
the EPA issued revised CERCLA 106(b) guidance on October 9, 1996, and 
then again on November 10, 2004. The February 23, 2012 CERCLA Section 
106(b) Reimbursement Guidance supersedes the previous CERCLA 106(b) 
guidance and is applicable to all petitions submitted on or after 
February 23, 2012.
    The CAFO Procedures document was formerly included as an appendix 
to the Practice Manual. For convenience to practitioners, the EPA has 
removed the document from the Practice Manual and has made it available 
as its own separate document as of January 2014.

    Authority:  Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, 
7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.; Federal Water Pollution Control Act (Clean 
Water Act), 33 U.S.C. 1251 et. seq.; Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 
U.S.C. 300f et. seq.; Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, 42 
U.S.C. 6901 et. seq.; Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 7401 et. seq.; 
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability 
Act, 42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.; 40 CFR 1.25(e), 22.4, 124.19)

    Dated: January 29, 2014.
Craig E. Hooks,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Administration and Resources 
Management.
[FR Doc. 2014-02693 Filed 2-13-14; 8:45 am]
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